Why Possible Paths Exists
Young people’s confidence and aspirations are often shaped by unjust assumptions linked to their background, community and family circumstances. These assumptions can narrow their sense of possibility and affect how they see themselves in relation to work. Possible Paths exists to challenge this by increasing access to relatable role models, whose working lives reflect the variety, complexity and humanity of modern career journeys.
The project works at the intersection of youth employability and the creative arts. It explores identity, self‑esteem, place and employment through creative practice and lived experience in ways that feel authentic, empowering and rooted in community.
Two Connected Strands
1. The Platform
Possible Paths is a developing digital space where young people will be able to explore real career stories from former pupils across Fife and beyond. Portraits, audio interviews and visual timelines present the full routes people take into work, including part‑time roles, training, retraining and career changes.
The platform’s greatest strength will be its searchability. Young people will be able to look for stories that feel relevant to them by filtering for hometown, interests, sectors and job types. This creates meaningful connections with examples drawn from their own communities, while also documenting and celebrating former pupils whose work takes them to national and global levels.
Stories are gathered through multiple routes. These include partnerships with schools, employers, apprenticeship programmes, industry networks and employability projects, as well as through the collaborative arts programme. This combined approach keeps the archive broad, community‑rooted and reflective of real opportunities in the local labour market and beyond.
2. The Arts Project
The collaborative arts project is one of the creative ways stories are made, explored and shared. Young people work directly with professional photographer Cate Gillon, taking part in interdisciplinary learning that aligns with the Developing the Young Workforce programme and the Curriculum for Excellence. They develop skills in photography, interviewing and research into the world of work, alongside meta‑skills such as communication, empathy, initiative and social confidence.
The arts project is for, of and by the community. It celebrates the narratives of former pupils and the contributions of the young collaborators who document them. Their work is shown in high‑profile public exhibitions before being homed long‑term in community spaces, creating lasting visibility and pride. The Levenmouth Phase, detailed in the June 2025 report, is one example of this approach in practice.
The next phase is now underway. Former pupils of Lochgelly High School who find fulfilment in their work are invited to contribute their career story. A video appeal explains how to take part.
How the Strands Connect
The platform is the permanent home of the stories.
The arts project is one of the creative ways those stories are generated.
Industry, apprenticeship partners and employability organisations contribute others.
The arts project is one of the creative ways those stories are generated.
Industry, apprenticeship partners and employability organisations contribute others.
Together, these strands form a living archive designed to inform, inspire and empower young people.
What’s Happening Now
The website and the arts project are developing alongside each other. Work is underway to expand the story archive, prepare the next cycle of creative collaboration, build new partnerships and refine both the exhibition and the search tools. Young people, schools, employers and partners across the creative and employability sectors are helping shape what comes next.
Vision
Possible Paths is rooted in Fife, and its purpose is to make real career stories from the region’s communities visible, accessible and meaningful. The long‑term aim is to build a rich, regionally focused archive that helps Fife’s future workforce explore opportunities with confidence, curiosity and a strong sense of possibility.
About the Founder
Possible Paths was created by Cate Gillon, a professional photographer, educator and facilitator of youth‑centred creative practice. Cate worked as a photojournalist, gaining unique insight into people’s lives, their working worlds and the stories that shape communities.
Growing up in a village affected by socioeconomic deprivation, she experienced first‑hand how others often used her hometown as a shorthand to define her. This lived experience drives her commitment to challenging assumptions about young people’s potential and widening the visibility of real, relatable career journeys.
Cate is a qualified teacher with a strong background in interdisciplinary learning aligned with the Curriculum for Excellence and the Developing the Young Workforce programme. Her work brings together creativity, education and community storytelling in ways that strengthen confidence, communication, social skills and a sense of place in young people.
She led the Levenmouth Phase of Possible Paths, supporting young collaborators to document real routes into work and to present their work in major public exhibitions that now live long‑term in community spaces.